System, method and computer program product for enabling gifting among users in an online environment

ABSTRACT

A system, method, and computer program product for an online transferring system where a conveying user may transfer a virtual object, representative of a real object, to a receiving user using an electronic ID of the receiving user and have a real object delivered to a shipping address of the receiving user without knowledge of the shipping address by the conveying user. The system includes an electronic data store having a set of identifying information for a receiving user. The set of identifying information includes an electronic ID and a physical contact address. The system includes a communication system for communication between the conveying user and the receiving user. The communication system provides the electronic ID to the conveying user without providing the physical contact address to the conveying user. The system includes a virtual object, representative of a real-world object, associated with the conveying user. The system includes a physical shipping system, coupled to the communication system, for initiating a delivery of the real-world object to the physical contact address responsive to the conveying user communicating the virtual object to the electronic ID.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/923,538, filed Oct. 24, 2007, entitled SYSTEM, METHOD AND COMPUTERPROGRAM PRODUCT FOR REALIZATION OF ONLINE VIRTUAL OBJECTS, the contentof which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety forall purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to online systems, methods, and computerprogram products. More specifically, the invention relates to a system,method and computer program product for anonymous association amongusers in an online social network and for a conveying user to send avirtual object to an electronic ID, virtual identity or the like of areceiving user and for sending a realized object (e.g., real-worldtangible product or service) to the physical contact address of thereceiving user without a priori physical contact address of thereceiving user by the conveying user.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Existing online social network sites allow users to interact with otherusers who are online acquaintances that they rarely or never interactwith in person. Users may wish to send each other a realized object(e.g., real-world tangible product or service), which requires knowledgeof a physical address. A user may feel awkward asking an onlineacquaintance for their physical address when wishing to send a realizedobject. When wishing to send a surprise or anonymous realized object toan online acquaintance, a user may need to ask the online acquaintancefor their physical address, thus eliminating the element of surprise oranonymity the sending user may have desired. Users are often unable tosend each other a realized object because they do not have access toeach other's physical addresses and are often not comfortable sharingtheir physical addresses with online acquaintances.

Users can share messages, pictures, and games with each other but all ofthese items are virtual objects being shared and presented to each othervia an online arena. However, a user cannot send something moresubstantial such as a realized (e.g., real-world tangible product orservice) object to a user without knowing their physical address.

There are some websites that involve proxy handlers, which allow certainitems to be sent anonymously to certain recipients without having todisclose the recipients' physical address. However, these websitesusually require users who are receiving the items to register online andset up a wish list of items they are seeking. Other users may select,purchase, and send a particular item that the user who registered theirwish list may be looking forward to receiving.

Amazon.com allows users to set up certain items as part of a wish list.Users can buy an item from the wish list for the user who created thewish list. One drawback to this system is that the receiving userdecides which items to place in their wish list, which can be limitingand detracts from the element of surprise.

Other proxy systems permit a user to establish a registry (similar to awish list) and permit one user to send items to another. In these cases,the items are pre-selected and the recipient's physical address istypically known. Examples include Babiesrus.com and Hallmark.com.

Babiesrus.com implements a “Baby Registry” system where users who havenewborn babies set up accounts with a list of items they would like toreceive from other users (usually friends and family). Users arepermitted to search the baby registries by registry number or last nameand can select items from a predetermined list to send to the newparents without having to enter their physical address or otheridentifying information because the new parents entered this informationupon registration. One drawback is that the recipient has knowledge ofthe fact that they will be receiving certain items. Also, in some cases,the process of looking up registries can be tedious.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,931,419 entitled “Data management system forautomatically accessing, maintaining, propagating user data amongplurality of communities, each of which contains plurality of members”(the '419 Patent) describes a community membership data managementsystem that identifies each user and their associated communities ofinterest. Each community has a user defined permission to access asubset of the user's data, which data is shared among some or all of themembers of that community. When the user's data is updated, the updateis automatically propagated to all of the identified associatedcommunities of interest and the members of those communities who havepermission to receive that data. Thus, each user of the presentcommunity membership data management system has their computerizedcalendar and address book system automatically populated with data,which data is continuously and automatically updated.

The confidentiality and security of the user data is maintained bydefining a set of permissions among the communities, members ofcommunities and for each user to ensure that the user maintains controlof the propagation of their data. Each user therefore maintains a“virtual user image” in each of the communities, where the members ofthat community view only one aspect of the user's personal data. Thesystem disclosed in the '419 Patent does not allow a user to send atangible product or service to another user without prior knowledge ofthe recipient's physical address.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system, method, and computer program product is directed to an onlineconveying system where a conveying user may transfer a virtual object,representative of a real object, to a receiving user using an electronicID or other virtual ID of the receiving user and have the real objectdelivered to a physical contact address or the shipping address of thereceiving user without knowledge of the physical contact address or theshipping address by the conveying user.

The system includes an electronic data store having a set of identifyinginformation for the receiving user. The set of identifying informationincludes an ID and a physical contact address. The system also includesa communication system, coupled to the electronic data store, forconnecting a conveying user to the electronic data store. Thecommunication system provides the ID of the receiving user to theconveying user without providing the physical contact address of thereceiving user to the conveying user. The system also includes afulfillment system, coupled to the communication system, for initiatinga real-world delivery of the real-world object to the physical contactaddress responsive to conveyance of the virtual object to thefulfillment system.

The method includes conveying a virtual object, representative of areal-world object, to the receiving user. The method also includesidentifying the physical contact address or shipping address of thereceiving user, wherein the physical contact address or the shippingaddress remains undisclosed to the conveying user. The method alsoincludes notifying a fulfillment system of the conveyance of the virtualobject to the receiving user. The method also includes delivering thereal-world object to the physical contact address or the shippingaddress in response to the notification to the fulfillment system.

Advantages of the present invention include delivery of “surprise” realobjects to a user associated with an electronic ID without the conveyinguser knowing the physical contact or shipping address of the receivinguser and without the receiving user developing a priori a list ofdesired real objects or learning of an impending delivery of a knownobject, such as by deletion of an object from their list. It is also anadvantage that a conveyed virtual object, associated with the virtualidentity of a receiving user, represents possession of a delivered (orimpending delivery) real-world object and therefore has an intrinsic andimplied value among users of an online community.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a computer system used in the implementation of an exampleembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an example embodiment of a portion of a network systemconnected to a client terminal.

FIG. 3 is a generalized schematic of a MIR system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of one example embodiment of a MIR system.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a MIR process according to one exampleembodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In one example embodiment of the invention, an online conveying systemallows a conveying user to transfer a virtual object, representative ofa real object or a service or an experience, to a receiving user usingan electronic ID, some other type of virtual ID, or any otherrepresentation of, or reference to, the receiving user and have the realobject delivered to a physical contact address or shipping address ofthe receiving user without knowledge of the physical contact address orthe shipping address by the conveying user. In another exampleembodiment, the real object may not be representative of the virtualobject. Various modifications to the example embodiments and the genericprinciples and features described herein will be readily apparent tothose skilled in the art. Thus, the invention is not intended to belimited to the embodiment shown but is to be accorded the widest scopeconsistent with the principles and features described herein.

In the following discussion, the term “conveying” is used in a specialsense. For example, conveying a virtual object from a conveying user toa receiving user results in a transfer that associates the virtualobject with the receiving user. This conveyance is not required to implyin every case a change in an association of the virtual object withrespect to the conveying user. That is, in some instances, the conveyinguser may maintain an association with the virtual object and in otherinstances, the virtual object may be disassociated from the conveyinguser under some circumstances. In other instances, the nature of theassociation may be changed in some way but not disassociated (completelyor partially). Also, the term “virtual object” may be representative ofreal world tangible goods, services or experiences. For example, avirtual object may be representative of tangible objects such asflowers, chocolates, CDs, candles, or a dress. Also, a virtual objectmay be representative of a service such as a car wash or a housecleaning service. A virtual object may also be representative of anexperience such as a trip or an experience at a resort, a spa or anightclub. Likewise, the terms “real object” or “real-world object” maybe a tangible goods (e.g., flowers, chocolates, furniture, vehicles,etc.) or a service (e.g., car wash, house cleaning service, etc.) or anexperience (e.g., trip to a resort, a spa or a nightclub). Also, theterms “shipping address”, “delivery address”, physical address”,“physical contact address”, “physical shipping address” and the like areused interchangeably.

The following description and claims also use the term “ID” or“electronic ID” or “virtual ID” and related words in their expansivesense to include any electronic data that may serve as an absoluteunique mapping to a particular “user” or a “collection of users” or arelative unique mapping that is unique within the subject referencepool. For example, account numbers, telephone numbers, email addresses,photos, avatars, icons, any other representations of, or reference to, auser or a collection of users may all be an ID or an electronic ID or avirtual ID for understanding the embodiments of the present invention.

By user, the following description not only includes a person operatingthe system, but includes processes and daemons and otherautomated/autonomous entities that may or may not be controlled(directly or indirectly) by a person.

It is common for many reasons for a user to isolate their online lifefrom their physical life and it is important to preserve the ability ofusers to maintain this isolation while providing the user with some ofthe advantages of the online world in their real world life and viceversa. For example, it is relatively easy to exchange virtual objectssuch as games, videos, photos, electronic greeting cards, or icons ofvarious real-world objects between users and many users have littleconcern for providing virtual delivery addresses for these virtualobjects. However it is often desirable to limit knowledge of thephysical delivery address thereby impairing delivery of real worldobjects. In one example embodiment of the invention, a system and methodfacilitates protected delivery of a real world object to the physicaldelivery address of the user in response to communication of a virtualobject to the user or to a proxy or agent of the user. For example, theproxy or agent may include a fulfillment center that includes anelectronic data store that links an ID of a receiving user to a physicaldelivery address. The electronic data store may be a database or anyother data storage system. When a virtual object is conveyed to thefulfillment center and associated with an ID (e.g., an electronic ID, avirtual ID, or the like), a real world object associated with thevirtual object is provided to the user at the physical delivery address.Advantageously, a conveying user does not need to know the physicaldelivery address of the receiving user and does not require that thereceiving user preselect the real world object, among other advantages.In another example embodiment of the invention, a conveying user conveysa virtual object to a receiving user, and the fulfillment centerdelivers to the receiving user a real-world object that is unrelated tothe virtual object. In other words, a conveying user may deliver to thereceiving user a real world object that is not associated with thevirtual object. For example, the virtual object conveyed to thereceiving user may be an icon of a box of chocolates while the realworld object delivered to the receiving user may be a gift certificateto a resort or a spa or the real world object delivered to the receivinguser may be flowers or a bottle of wine. The fulfillment center may beimplemented in partnership with a third party such as, for example, acentralized shipping center, a third-party contractor (e.g., ProFlowers,See's), a major online retailer (e.g., Amazon.com or Overstock.com) orother major retailers (e.g., WalMart). The fulfillment center may beestablished and operated by a system that implements one or moreembodiments of the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled inthe art that the fulfillment center may be implemented in a variety ofways.

In one example embodiment of the invention, an online social networkincludes a collection of users (e.g., tens, hundreds, thousands, ormillions of users) each having some unique electronic identification(e.g., user name, email address, handle, avatar, picture, photo, icon orany reference to the user, or the like) by which users refer to oneanother. Additionally, some of the users may have detailed real-worldinformation (e.g., phone numbers, addresses, and other personallyidentifiable information) that users are generally not interested inpassing out to the public at large.

FIG. 1 is a computer system 100 that may be used to implement an exampleembodiment of the invention including at least portions of the disclosedembodiments. The computer system 100 includes a central processing unit(CPU) 105, such as one of the PDA (personal digital assistant)microprocessors, PC microprocessors or workstations, e.g. Intel™processor used in a personal computer, workstation, portable electronicdevice or other microprocessor or microcontroller or controller, and isinterconnected to various other components by a system bus 110. Anoperating system 115 runs on CPU 105, provides control and is used tocoordinate the function of the various components of FIG. 1. Theoperating system 115 may be one of the commercially available operatingsystems such as the Palm OS available from PalmSource, Inc.; Microsoft'sWindows, Apple's Tiger, as well as UNIX and AIX operating systems, andthe like. One or more application programs 120, controlled by thesystem, are moved into and out of a main memory RAM 125. These programsinclude a program of the present invention to be subsequently describedin combination with local or wide-area network systems, such as forexample, the Internet. A read only memory (ROM) 130 is connected to theCPU 105 via the bus 110 and includes the Basic Input/Output System(BIOS) that controls the basic computer functions. The RAM 125, an I/Oadapter 135 and a communications adapter 138 are also interconnected tosystem bus 110. The I/O adapter 135 may be a Small Computer SystemInterface (SCSI) adapter that communicates with a disk storage device140 or other communications protocol including serial advancedtechnology attachment controller and its protocol(s). A communicationsadapter 135 interconnects the bus 110 with an outside network enablingthe data processing system to communicate with other such systems over aLocal Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN), which includes, ofcourse, the Internet, the WEB, intranets, extranets, and other publicand private networks. The terms associated with the network are meant tobe generally interchangeable and are so used in the present descriptionof the distribution network. I/O devices are also connected to thesystem bus 110 via a user interface adapter 145 and a display adapter150. A keyboard 155 and a pointing device (e.g., mouse 160 or ajoystick, remote keypad, game controller, stylus, button navigationssystem, or the like) are all interconnected to a bus 110 through theuser interface adapter 145. The display adapter 150 includes a framebuffer 165, which is a storage device that holds a representation ofeach pixel on a monitor or display screen 170. Images may be stored in aframe buffer 165 for display on monitor 170 through various components,such as a digital to analog converter (not shown) and the like. By usingthe aforementioned I/O devices, a user is capable of inputtinginformation to the system through the keyboard 155 (or other inputdevice) or a mouse 160 (or other pointing system) and receiving outputinformation from the system via display 170. The system also contains amemory cache and includes a portion of disk storage drive 140 and aportion of RAM 125. Adapter 135 may also be used for other storage types175 (e.g., the illustrated optical drive) for reading and in some caseswriting computer readable instructions to/from a tangible substrate(e.g., an optical disc 180), such as computer instructions that enablethe system 100 to implement all or a portion of the present invention orembodiments described herein. It will be apparent to those skilled inthe art that other computing systems having different architecture mayalso be used to implement the embodiments of the invention.

As noted above, the embodiments of the present invention may use a widerange of computing systems and devices. One example embodiment may useone or more wireless-network-connected electronic devices (e.g.,portable or mobile computing system) in communication with a serverapplication and optionally one or more desktop/workstation personalcomputers. Client applications are supported by the electronic deviceand communicate via a wireless network connection, as described in moredetail herein. Additionally to simplify the following discussion, it isnoted that the example embodiments of the invention contemplates use onmany different communications networks, both public and private. In someimplementations, multiple different types of network systems may be usedtogether, and the server may, for example, bridge differentcommunications networks and translate/convert between differentprotocols/formats to exchange messages between the devices and toexchange communications with any device. In the following example, useof the Internet accessed through wireless access points is described asan example embodiment though other configurations are within the scopeof the invention.

Additionally, one embodiment among many different alternativeembodiments includes implementation of a “Make It Rear”™ featureassociated with a social networking site. MakeltReal, or MIR, is ageneral reference to features and functions of the various disclosedembodiments that provide a real-world tangible object responsive to avirtual object. Various components of the methods and systems describedare identified with a MIR prefix, such as MIRSpace, MIR client, MIRserver, MIR devices, and the like as more specifically described herein.

A social networking site, is for example, an online virtualmeeting/collaboration resource in which various users have virtualidentities that interact with other virtual identities of other users.These virtual identities often are referenced using an ID. In the socialnetworking site, a user may have an option of conveying a virtualrepresentation of an object (an icon of a box of chocolates or flowersfor example) to another virtual identity through the ID. A fulfillmentsystem or process associated with the networking site (integrated orstand-alone for example) makes the virtual box of chocolates or flowersreal by delivering a real box of chocolates or flowers to the real userassociated with the virtual identity represented by the ID. Thefulfillment system or process may be used to deliver a real-world objectthat is unrelated to the virtual object. For example, a virtualrepresentation of a box of chocolates or flowers may be conveyed to areceiving user and the fulfillment system may be used to deliver to thereceiving user a bottle of champagne or wine, a CD, or any othertangible object, a service (e.g., a carwash, house-cleaning) or anexperience (e.g., a gift certificate to a spa or a resort). There aremany different ways that the fulfillment system or process may beimplemented and integrated/associated with the social networking siteand many different ways in which initiation of conveyance of a virtualobject to a receiving user (directly or indirectly) having a known IDand a confidential physical delivery address may initiate a real-worlddelivery.

Before going further into details of specific embodiments, set forthbelow is a general perspective of the various elements and methods thatmay be related to the invention. Since a major aspect of the inventionis directed to network communications, preferably Internetcommunications using Internet and/or Web protocols, and use of datamessaging similar to access of Web pages, an understanding of suchnetworks and their operating principles may be helpful. The followingdoes not go into great detail in describing the networks to which thepresent invention is applicable. For details on Web nodes, objects andlinks, reference is made to the text, Mastering the Internet, G. H. Cadyet al., published by Sybex Inc., Alameda, Calif., 1996; or the text,Internet: The Complete Reference, Millennium Edition, Margaret Young etal., Osborne/McGraw-Hill, Berkeley, Calif., 1999. Any data communicationsystem that interconnects or links computer controlled systems withvarious sites defines a communications network. Of course, the Internetor Web is a global network of a heterogeneous mix of computertechnologies and operating systems. Higher level objects are linked tothe lower level objects in the hierarchy through a variety of networkserver computers.

FIG. 2 is an example embodiment of a portion of a network system (e.g.,the Web or the Internet) to which a client terminal 200 used fortransmitting or receiving messages is connected. The client terminal 200may be implemented by the computer system 100 shown in FIG. 1. Forpurposes of the embodiment, the client terminal 200 serves as a clientstation and has received and displayed a local MIRSpace 210. TheMIRSpace 210 may, for example, be a website, a device based applicationon a computer or a mobile device, or an online-based application.Reference may be made to the above-mentioned Mastering the Internet, pp.136-147, for typical connections between local stations to the Web vianetwork servers, any of which may be used to implement the system onwhich this invention is used. The client terminal 200 may be connectedto the World Wide Web 225 or the Internet using any type of wired orwireless network connections. A local data structure representative of alocal MIRSpace 210 has been developed at the terminal 200. A MIR clientprogram 245 operates within terminal 200 to transceive and process(e.g., display) the local MIRSpace 210 on terminal 200. Alsocommunicated to the World Wide Web 225 are a web site 250 and a web site255, where remote resources are stored and accessible to computingsystems. In addition, the system includes one or more additional MIRclients (e.g., MIR device 260), third-party processes 265 (e.g.,printing, archiving, and the like), and additional MIR resources 270.Depending upon implementation, the third-party process 265 and/or theMIR resources 270 may include one or more data stores (e.g., a database)or fulfillment services. It will be apparent to those skilled in the artthat the system of FIG. 2 is illustrated merely as an example embodimentand the system of FIG. 2 can be implemented in other ways also.

In one example embodiment of the present invention, support for naturaland instant ad hoc collaboration networks are setup simply and existonly as long as desired. A first participant uses a MIR client to createa MIRSpace (with any access controls) from desired content and providesthe access information to other participants. As these otherparticipants attach to the MIRSpace, the content is reproduced in eachlocal MIRSpace of each attaching MIR client. Each user participates inthe session and as the other participants detach, the content from theMIRSpace of the detaching participant is removed from the devicesupporting the local MIRSpace, leaving no presence behind. The firstparticipant may use content from a removable memory system operable withthe electronic device supporting the MIR client to also leave no copy ofthe desired on the electronic device. In some instances, the MIR clientis operable from the removable memory system as well. Thus these ad hoccollaboration networks have low resource requirements, are createdeasily, and may be configured to leave no trace of the clients or of thecontent on supporting electronic devices as the network is dismantled—anon-persistent network with non-persistent content that enhances datasecurity and ensures that each ad hoc network includes the latest andmost current content available to the originator/creator.

FIG. 3 is a generalized schematic of a MIR system 300. The system 300includes a plurality of MIR devices 260 x, each supporting a MIR client245 as shown in FIG. 2, each exchanging messages with a server such as aMIR server 215 and with other MIR devices 260 through the MIR server 215through a network 305. Each MIR device 260 x is linked to the MIR server215 and initially is able to exchange messages with only the MIR server215. The MIR server 215 includes one or more data structures forsupporting message exchange among a set of MIR devices 260. Any MIRdevice 260 successfully attaching to one of these data structuresthereafter exchanges messages with all other MIR devices attached to thesame data structure. The MIR server 215 routes messages from one MIRdevice 260 attached to a data structure to one or more other MIR devices260 also attached to the same data structure. Thus, the server 215 maybe supporting multiple sets of MIR devices 260, each participating in anindependent message exchange with server 215 routing all messages asappropriate. In one example embodiment, the system supports multiplemessage exchange from multiple clients to other attached clients.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of one example embodiment of a MIR system 400.System 400 includes a MIR server 405 that is a specially-programmedserver coupled to an electronic data store 410. The data store 410 maybe a database or any other data storage system. The data store 410includes a set of identifying information for a receiving user. The setof identifying information for the receiving user may include an ID anda physical contact address. In certain embodiments, there will be manyreceiving users, each having a set of identifying information as notedabove. Cooperating with the server 405 is a media system 415 (e.g.,computer readable disk, optical disk, hard drive and the like) forstoring computer program instructions that interact with one or morecomputing systems (e.g., server 405) to cause the system to operatesubstantially as described herein.

The server 405 is linked to a network 420 that supports any conveyingfunctions, receiving functions, and fulfillment functions according toany particular implementation. Note that these functions are showndiscrete but may physically be integrated with other functions shown inFIG. 4. A MIR client device 425 implements any conveying functionsthrough communication with the network 420. A conveying user 430(whether a real person or an automated/autonomous process) operates MIRclient device 425.

A receiving user device 435 implements any receiving functions requiredby the implementation. The device 435 is linked to the network 420. Areceiving user 440 operates device 435.

The MIR client 425 supports a conveying process 445 and is responsive tothe conveying user 430 to initiate conveyance of a virtual object(represented by an envelope icon in FIG. 4 which is a placeholder forany suitable representation for the virtual object). The receiving userdevice 435 supports an optional receiving process 450 to indicate to theuser 440 the conveyance of the virtual object from user 430.

It is not necessary to provide advance notification to the user 440 orto provide an identification of the precise virtual object, such as whenthe user 430 wishes to provide some surprise/mystery element. Theprocess 450 may either indicate exactly the identity of the conveyedvirtual object and/or “real” object, it may indicate conveyance of somevirtual object and/or “real” object, or provide the user 440 with noindication. Thus all or a portion of the identity of the virtual objectand/or the “real” object may be masked from receiving user.

A fulfillment process 455, responsive to the conveyance of the virtualobject, makes the virtual object real for the user 440 by delivery of atangible object to the user 440 at a physical delivery address. The user430 need know only some ID of the user 440 recognized by the system 400and the fulfillment process 455 is able to obtain the physical deliveryaddress associated with that ID. Exchanges between user 430 and user 440need be conducted by ID only. In one example embodiment of theinvention, the tangible object, also referred to as the real-worldobject, may be unrelated to the virtual object. For example, the virtualobject conveyed to the receiving user may be an image of a box ofchocolates or flowers or some other icon, and the real object deliveredto the receiving user may be a bottle of wine, a book, or a giftcertificate to a resort or a spa or a ticket to a concert.

While the system 400 is an example embodiment other embodiments arepossible and within the scope of the present invention. The system 400has been described using the term conveyance instead of delivery andconveyance has a special meaning when applied to the embodiments of thepresent invention. In some instances, conveyance includes delivery, suchas a copy of the virtual object being delivered from the process 445 tothe process 450. This includes the case where the virtual object iscopied from the process 445 to the process 450 as well as the case wherethe virtual object is moved from the process 445 to the process 450.

Further, the system 400 is described in the context of having variousfunctions, such as for example the fulfillment process 455, beingresponsive to conveyance of the virtual object. Depending uponconfiguration and options enabled by the system 400, the fulfillmentprocess 455 may be triggered by any user associated with the virtualobject. In some cases, simply conveying the virtual object from theprocess 445 to the process 450 with the desired option will trigger thefulfillment process 455 to make the virtual object real for the user440. The system 400 or one of the embodiments of the invention allows aconveying user to deliver a real world object responsive to theconveyance of a virtual object and without the conveying user having thephysical contact address of the receiving user. In some embodiments, theconveying and receiving user are the same.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a MIR process 500 according to one exampleembodiment of the invention. The process 500 begins at a block 505 thatassociates a virtual object with a conveying user. This association maybe direct (for example a user “purchasing” a virtual object for theaccount of the user) or indirect wherein a user identifies themselves toa third-party having possession of virtual objects. The process 500 mayallow the user to select one or more virtual objects that are availablefor purchase or allow the user to select one or more virtual objectsthat are freely available without any requirement for a purchase or apayment. The association may be simply a minimal set of information suchas to debit an account of the conveying user for conveyance of thevirtual object/realizing the virtual object for the intended receivinguser.

Next at a block 510, a gift transfer profile of the receiving user isapplied to the conveyance (a gift: e.g., an unsolicited conveyance of avirtual object). The gift transfer profile provides settings andoptions, when implemented, to permit a user to control an ability ofother users to convey virtual objects, real world objects andrealizations of virtual objects. As discussed before, the real worldobjects may be unrelated to the virtual objects, or the virtual objectsmay be representative of the real world objects. A user may determinewhether virtual objects may be conveyed, who may or may not conveyvirtual objects, the types of virtual objects that are or are notconveyable, among other options. The specific options depend upon theimplementation.

Next at a block 515, a test is applied to determine whether theparticular conveyance is allowed (or not disallowed in some cases). Ifthe test at the block 515 is negative, the process 500 branches to block520 from the block 515 and halts the conveyance. The halt may includeinformation to the conveying user regarding why the conveyance did notproceed.

If the test at the block 515 is positive and the conveyance ispermitted, at a block 525, the virtual object is conveyed to thereceiving user using an ID of the receiving user. There are variationsto the block 525 relating to when the virtual object is conveyed,whether direct or indirect, and how much information is conveyed.

The process 500 then advances to a block 530 to determine the physicalshipping address (physical contact address) of the receiving user (sincein one embodiment the conveying user does not have access to thephysical shipping address). In one example embodiment, an ID of thereceiving user is a key into the electronic data store to access thephysical shipping address of the receiving user.

After the block 530, the process 500 advances to a block 535 in which areal-world object (e.g., a realization of the virtual object) isdelivered or shipped to (or the delivery initiated to) the physicalshipping address of the receiving user. In one example embodiment, afulfillment function associated with the system is involved in the block535. In one example embodiment, the gift transfer profile of thereceiving user is applied to the real world object to determine if theconveyance of the real world object is allowed or disallowed. As will beappreciated, this test is especially useful if the real world object isunrelated to the virtual object. For example, the gift transfer profilemay allow the conveyance of a virtual object that is an icon or apicture of a box of chocolates or flowers. However, if the real worldobject that is attempted to be conveyed is a gift certificate to aresort or tickets for a vacation, the gift transfer profile may blockthe conveyance of the particular real world object. As discussed before,the real world object may be unrelated to the virtual object and thusthis test is useful.

In one embodiment, after the block 535, the process 500 advances to atest block 540 to determine whether the receiving user is to receive anotice with all information regarding the real-world conveyance. Whenthe test at the block 540 is negative, some or all of the real-worldobject details are masked from the receiving user at block 545 who mayreceive no notification or a notice that “Something Special” isscheduled for delivery on a specific delivery date. However, when thetest at the block 540 is positive and the receiving user is to receive anotice with all details of the real-world object conveyance, the process500 advances to a block 550, which provides the user with all details ofthe real-world object and its delivery.

It is an advantage that a receiving user is not required to pre-build alist of objects that may be made real or that a conveying user is notlimited to pre-defined choices made by system 500.

While the process shown in FIG. 5 depicts a check against a conveyanceprofile prior to a conveyance of a virtual object, these blocks, andothers, may be reordered in some embodiments. For example, someembodiments have the flexibility, when desired to first check a gifttransfer profile of many users, and then only convey or associate avirtual object with those users (or a subset of those users selected onother criteria) who accept certain types of items or certain types ofgifts. It may also be desirable to first convey the virtual object tothe receiving user before, or without, initiating a check against a gifttransfer profile. In some embodiments it is desirable to provide anindirect conveyance/association, where the result may be an associationwith a community or group of users (i.e. an indirect association), afterwhich all users in that group may receive an object. In one exampleembodiment, the realization of a virtual object causes the virtualobject to be changed (“changed virtual object”) to indicate thatfulfillment has occurred. The changed virtual object indicating therealization of the virtual object may be associated with the ID orprofile of a receiving user. For example, a conveying user may convey avirtual object representative of a real-world object to a receiving userand then convey the real-world object to the receiving user via thefulfillment system. The virtual object conveyed to the receiving userwill change to indicate that the real-world object corresponding to, orrelated to, the virtual object has been conveyed to the receiving user.The virtual object may change in color, shape, or other form, start toglow, flash, look glossy, have an animation, have a notice, or haveother special effects to indicate the realization of the virtual object.

The system above has been described in one embodiment including a server(e.g., MIR server) and a plurality of MIR clients and MIR users. Inalternate embodiments, the MIR clients communicate via a peer-to-peercommunications system in addition to or in lieu of Server/Clientcommunications.

The system, method, computer program product, and propagated signaldescribed in this application may, of course, be embodied in hardware;e.g., within or coupled to a Central Processing Unit (“CPU”),microprocessor, microcontroller, System on Chip (“SOC”), or any otherprogrammable device. Additionally, the system, method, computer programproduct, and propagated signal may be embodied in software (e.g.,computer readable code, program code, instructions and/or data disposedin any form, such as source, object or machine language) disposed, forexample, in a computer usable (e.g., readable) medium configured tostore the software. Such software enables the function, fabrication,modeling, simulation, description and/or testing of the apparatus andprocesses described herein. For example, this can be accomplishedthrough the use of general programming languages (e.g., C, C++), GDSIIdatabases, hardware description languages (HDL) including Verilog HDL,VHDL, AHDL (Altera HDL) and so on, or other available programs,databases, nanoprocessing, and/or circuit (i.e., schematic) capturetools. Such software can be disposed in any known computer usable mediumincluding semiconductor, magnetic disk, optical disc (e.g., CD-ROM,DVD-ROM, etc.) and as a computer data signal embodied in a computerusable (e.g., readable) transmission medium (e.g., carrier wave or anyother medium including digital, optical, or analog-based medium). Assuch, the software can be transmitted over communication networksincluding the Internet and intranets. A system, method, computer programproduct, and propagated signal embodied in software may be included in asemiconductor intellectual property core (e.g., embodied in HDL) andtransformed to hardware in the production of integrated circuits.Additionally, a system, method, computer program product, and propagatedsignal as described herein may be embodied as a combination of hardwareand software.

One of the implementations of the present invention is as a routine inan operating system made up of programming steps or instructionsresident in a memory of a computing system as well known, duringcomputer operations. Until required by the computer system, the programinstructions may be stored in another readable medium, e.g. in a diskdrive, or in a removable memory, such as an optical disk for use in a CDROM computer input or in a floppy disk for use in a floppy disk drivecomputer input. Further, the program instructions may be stored in thememory of another computer prior to use in the system of the presentinvention and transmitted over a LAN or a WAN, such as the Internet,when required by the user of the present invention. One skilled in theart should appreciate that the processes controlling the presentinvention are capable of being distributed in the form of computerreadable media in a variety of forms.

Any suitable programming language can be used to implement the routinesof the present invention including C, C++, Java, assembly language, etc.Different programming techniques can be employed such as procedural orobject oriented. The routines can execute on a single processing deviceor multiple processors. Although the steps, operations or computationsmay be presented in a specific order, this order may be changed indifferent embodiments. In some embodiments, multiple steps shown assequential in this specification can be performed at the same time. Thesequence of operations described herein can be interrupted, suspended,or otherwise controlled by another process, such as an operating system,kernel, and the like. The routines can operate in an operating systemenvironment or as stand-alone routines occupying all, or a substantialpart, of the system processing.

In the description herein, numerous specific details are provided, suchas examples of components and/or methods, to provide a thoroughunderstanding of embodiments of the present invention. One skilled inthe relevant art will recognize, however, that an embodiment of theinvention can be practiced without one or more of the specific details,or with other apparatus, systems, assemblies, methods, components,materials, parts, and/or the like. In other instances, well-knownstructures, materials, or operations are not specifically shown ordescribed in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of embodiments of thepresent invention.

A “computer-readable medium” for purposes of embodiments of the presentinvention may be any medium that can contain, store, communicate,propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with theinstruction execution system, apparatus, system or device. The computerreadable medium can be, by way of example only but not by limitation, anelectronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, orsemiconductor system, apparatus, system, device, propagation medium, orcomputer memory.

A “processor” or “process” includes any human, hardware and/or softwaresystem, mechanism or component that processes data, signals or otherinformation. A processor can include a system with a general-purposecentral processing unit, multiple processing units, dedicated circuitryfor achieving functionality, or other systems. Processing need not belimited to a geographic location, or have temporal limitations. Forexample, a processor can perform its functions in “real time,”“offline,” in a “batch mode,” etc. Portions of processing can beperformed at different times and at different locations, by different(or the same) processing systems.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment”, “anembodiment”, or “a specific embodiment” means that a particular feature,structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodimentis included in at least one embodiment of the present invention and notnecessarily in all embodiments. Thus, respective appearances of thephrases “in one embodiment”, “in an embodiment”, or “in a specificembodiment” in various places throughout this specification are notnecessarily referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, theparticular features, structures, or characteristics of any specificembodiment of the present invention may be combined in any suitablemanner with one or more other embodiments. It is to be understood thatother variations and modifications of the embodiments of the presentinvention described and illustrated herein are possible in light of theteachings herein and are to be considered as part of the spirit andscope of the present invention.

Embodiments of the invention may be implemented by using a generalpurpose digital computer, software applications, routines and softwaremodules, hardware including application specific integrated circuits,programmable logic devices, field programmable gate arrays, optical andother mechanisms may be used. In general, the functions of the presentinvention can be achieved by any means as is known in the art.Distributed, or networked systems, components and circuits can be used.Communication, or transfer, of data may be wired, wireless, or by anyother means.

It will also be appreciated that one or more of the elements depicted inthe drawings/figures can also be implemented in a more separated orintegrated manner, or even removed or rendered as inoperable in certaincases, as is useful in accordance with a particular application. It isalso within the spirit and scope of the present invention to implement aprogram or code that can be stored in a machine-readable medium topermit a computer to perform any of the methods described above.

Additionally, any signal arrows in the drawings/Figures should beconsidered only as exemplary, and not limiting, unless otherwisespecifically noted. Furthermore, the term “or” as used herein isgenerally intended to mean “and/or” unless otherwise indicated.Combinations of components or steps will also be considered as beingnoted, where terminology is foreseen as rendering the ability toseparate or combine is unclear.

As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow,“a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural references unless the contextclearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein andthroughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and“on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

The foregoing description of illustrated embodiments of the presentinvention, including what is described in the Abstract, is not intendedto be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formsdisclosed herein. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, theinvention are described herein for illustrative purposes only, variousequivalent modifications are possible within the spirit and scope of thepresent invention, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognizeand appreciate. As indicated, these modifications may be made to thepresent invention in light of the foregoing description of illustratedembodiments of the present invention and are to be included within thespirit and scope of the present invention.

Thus, while the present invention has been described herein withreference to particular embodiments thereof, a latitude of modification,various changes and substitutions are intended in the foregoingdisclosures, and it will be appreciated that in some instances somefeatures of embodiments of the invention will be employed without acorresponding use of other features without departing from the scope andspirit of the invention as set forth. Therefore, many modifications maybe made to adapt a particular situation or material to the essentialscope and spirit of the present invention. It is intended that theinvention not be limited to the particular terms used in followingclaims and/or to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best modecontemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the inventionwill include any and all embodiments and equivalents falling within thescope of the appended claims. Thus, the scope of the invention is to bedetermined solely by the appended claims.

1. A computer-implemented method for selecting and transmitting imagesto users of a social network, said images being associated with gifts toone or more of the users, wherein the method comprises steps to:identify an first image associated with a gift given by a first user toa second user; cause the first image to display on one or more computingdevices operated by one or more respective users; identify an secondimage associated with the gift; and cause, by one or more processingdevices, the second image to display on the one or more computingdevices before or after initiating delivery of the gift to the seconduser.
 2. The computer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the one ormore computing devices include a first computing device operated by thefirst user, a second computing device operated by the second user, and athird computing device operated by a third user.
 3. Thecomputer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the method comprises stepsto: cause the first image to display on a second computing deviceoperated by the second user before delivery of the gift is initiated tothe second user; and cause the second image to display on the secondcomputing device before delivery of the gift is initiated to the seconduser.
 4. The computer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the methodcomprises steps to: cause the first image to display on a thirdcomputing device operated by a third user before delivery of the gift isinitiated to the second user; and cause the second image to display onthe third computing device after delivery of the gift is initiated tothe second user.
 5. The computer-implemented method claim 1, wherein themethod comprises steps to: cause the first image to display on a firstcomputing device operated by the first user before delivery of the giftis initiated to the second user; cause the first image to display on asecond computing device operated by the second user before delivery ofthe gift is initiated to the second user; and cause the second image todisplay on the first computing device and the second computing deviceafter delivery of the gift is initiated to the second user.
 6. Thecomputer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the method comprises stepsto: cause the first image to display on a first computing deviceoperated by the first user before delivery of the gift is initiated tothe second user; cause the first image to display on a second computingdevice operated by the second user before delivery of the gift isinitiated to the second user; and cause the second image to display onthe first computing device and the second computing device beforedelivery of the gift is initiated to the second user.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the method comprises stepsto: cause the first image to display on a second computing deviceoperated by the second user before delivery of the gift is initiated tothe second user; cause the first image to display on a third computingdevice operated by a third user before delivery of the gift is initiatedto the second user; cause the second image to display on the secondcomputing device before delivery of the gift is initiated to the seconduser; and cause the second image to display on the third computingdevice after delivery of the gift is initiated to the second user. 8.The computer-implemented method claim 1, wherein the first imageincludes an icon, and the second image includes a modified version ofthe icon.
 9. The computer-implemented method claim 3, wherein the giftis delivered to an email address of the second user.
 10. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first image and thesecond image are displayed on one or more respective webpages providedby a social network to the one or more computing devices.
 11. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the method comprisesfurther steps to: cause the first image to display on a second computingdevice operated by the second user before delivery of the gift isinitiated to the second user; and cause the second image to display onthe second computing device after delivery of the gift is initiated tothe second user.
 12. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, whereinthe method comprises further steps to: cause the first image to displayon a first computing device operated by the first user before deliveryof the gift is initiated to the second user; cause the first image todisplay on a third computing device operated by a third user beforedelivery of the gift is initiated to the second user; and cause thesecond image to display on the first computing device and the thirdcomputing device after delivery of the gift is initiated to the seconduser.
 13. A system for selecting and transmitting images to users of asocial network, said images being associated with gifts to one or moreof the users, wherein the system includes at least one processingcomponent operable to: identify an first image associated with a giftgiven by a first user to a second user; cause the first image to displayon one or more computing devices operated by one or more respectiveusers; identify an second image associated with the gift; and cause, byone or more processing devices, the second image to display on the oneor more computing devices before or after initiating delivery of thegift to the second user.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the firstimage and the second image are displayed on one or more respectivewebpages provided by a social network to the one or more computingdevices, and wherein the one or more computing devices include a firstcomputing device operated by the first user, a second computing deviceoperated by the second user, and a third computing device operated by athird user.
 15. The system of claim 13, wherein the gift is delivered toan email address of the second user, and wherein the one or moreprocessing devices are operable to: cause the first image to display ona second computing device operated by the second user before delivery ofthe gift is initiated to the second user; cause the second image todisplay on the second computing device before or after delivery of thegift is initiated to the second user; cause the second image to displayon the first computing device and the third computing device afterdelivery of the gift is initiated to the second user.
 16. The system ofclaim 15, wherein the second image includes at least one color that isnot in the first image, and wherein the one or more processing devicesare operable to: cause the second image to display on the secondcomputing device before delivery of the gift is initiated to the seconduser; and initiate delivery of the gift to an email address of thesecond user.
 17. A computer program product comprising a non-transitorycomputer usable medium having computer-readable instructions embodied onthe computer-readable medium implementing a method for selecting andtransmitting images to users of a social network, said images beingassociated with gifts to one or more of the users, wherein the methodincludes steps to: identify an first image associated with a gift givenby a first user to a second user; cause the first image to display onone or more computing devices operated by one or more respective users;identify an second image associated with the gift; and cause, by one ormore processing devices, the second image to display on the one or morecomputing devices before or after initiating delivery of the gift to thesecond user.
 18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein thefirst image and the second image are displayed on one or more respectivewebpages provided by a social network to the one or more computingdevices, and wherein the one or more computing devices include a firstcomputing device operated by the first user, a second computing deviceoperated by the second user, and a third computing device operated by athird user.
 19. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein thegift is delivered to an email address of the second user, and whereinthe method comprises steps to: cause the first image to display on asecond computing device operated by the second user before delivery ofthe gift is initiated to the second user; cause the second image todisplay on the second computing device before or after delivery of thegift is initiated to the second user; cause the second image to displayon the first computing device and the third computing device afterdelivery of the gift is initiated to the second user.
 20. The computerprogram product of claim 19, wherein the second image includes at leastone color that is not in the first image, and wherein the methodcomprises steps to: cause the second image to display on the secondcomputing device before delivery of the gift is initiated to the seconduser; and initiate delivery of the gift to an email address of thesecond user.